Program: Des Moines Area CC
Head Coach: Nic Mishler: 6th year
NJCAA Region/Division: Region 11, DII
Email: [email protected]   
Twitter: nicmishler  
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Coming off a season where DMACC made it to the DII World Series, the Bears got off to a sluggish start, going 6-11 in their first month. While they finished the year 25–30 overall, DMACC played its best baseball down the stretch, posting a 17–16 conference record and advancing to the Region 11 semifinals. As Coach Mishler heads into the new season, he does so facing a significant challenge after losing four frontline arms, along with five top-of-the-order bats. Even so, DMACC remains well-positioned, returning valuable innings and proven names throughout the lineup, while adding a trio of transferring arms expected to transform the rotation.

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PITCHERS

While losing over 240 innings on the mound, including their top four arms, DMACC looks to reload the staff with a group of returns and incoming transfers. Headlining this returning group is right-hander Andrew Theiss, coming off tossing 34.1 innings to a 6.55 ERA with 28 strikeouts. It was a rocky start out of the gate for Theiss, but as the year progressed, the righty found himself, tossing 23.9 innings, with 24 strikeouts, and two saves in conference play. This fall, the fastball has been sitting in the low 90s, topping out at 93mph. An arm that will be looking to continue the success he found late in the season. Following him are a trio of arms in right-handers Jordan Leininger, Rhett Pleggenkuhle, and left-hander Gage Miller. Leininger is coming off a strong fall where we saw the fastball touching 89.5mph, paired with a mid-80s sinker, and a solid mid-70s curveball that shows sweeping tendencies. Looking to improve on a year that saw him toss 24.2 innings, striking out 22, with a 10.22 ERA. Pleggenkuhle is a righty arm that showed well for us during our Kansas City JUCO tournament, striking out the side in his lone inning. The fastball was working in the mid-80s, and has been seen this fall up to 91, with a mid-70s curveball, and a low-80s changeup to follow. Another arm looking to improve on his freshman year mark, where he tossed 23 innings to a 10.17 ERA, with 20 strikeouts. Rounding out this group of returners is Gage Miller, who will be relied on heavily heading into the spring as one of the lone left-handers on the staff. Coming off a freshman year where he struck out 25 over 22.2 innings with a 9.53 ERA. This is another arm looking to improve on his first-year marks as he looks to have made strides this fall. Now running the fastball up to 88mph with a solid low-80s breaker to follow. This group is filled with eager arms looking to all improve on their freshman year marks.

• SO. RHP Jordan Leininger, 6-foot, 204 pounds with a strong, stocky frame, attacked with a fastball that touched 89.5 and a sinker at 86–87 with late dart. His curveball spun at 73–74 with over a foot of sweep, the sort of pitch that can buckle hitters when it tunnels right.

Although this staff returns a core group of arms, it was still in need of reinforcements that were found through the transfer portal. A pair of redshirt freshmen lead this group in right-handers Hunter Cook and Jackson Gwin. Cook is a transfer from Minnesota, who has put together a strong fall campaign, placing himself right in the mix for becoming a top-of-the-rotation arm. Then, with Gwin, who transferred in from Concordia Nebraska, is an arm our staff hasn't seen since his high school days. The righty is now showing his fastball up to 93mph, sitting in the low 90s, with 20 IVB and a slider in the low-80s. Right along Cook is an arm that has strung together an impressive fall, paving a way for immediate innings. Then, finally, there is left-hander Sebastian Talaga transferring from Grand Valley State. Much the same with all these transfers, Talaga had a strong fall season, with a solid three-pitch mix. The fastball has been sitting in the low 90s, had been up to 92mph, the changeup was mid-70s, and the cutter was in the low-80s, pairing well. These transfers are looking to make a major impact heading into the Spring for the DMACC staff.

Hunter Cook from: 9/19/15

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TWO-WAY

Freshman RHP/3B Drake Obermuller is a name our staff has tracked since high school and continues to trend upward. As he’s filled out his 6-foot, 175-pound frame, both arm strength and power have taken noticeable jumps. On the mound, Obermuller works from a deceptive lower ¾ slot, with the fastball now running up north of 90mph, nearly a 10 mph jump since the year prior. Along with the increase in velo has been a jump in EVs. The right-handed bat jumped up to a max EV of 98.3 mph with an average of 91.6mph. Obermuller continues to develop and round out his toolset, making him a name to follow in DMACC's freshman class.

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OFFENSE

Offensively, DMACC faces a similar challenge as on the mound, losing five top-of-the-order bats entering the fall. Even so, the lineup still features several bright spots, highlighted by a group of returning freshmen. Leading this returning core are 1B Adam Leininger and C Brock Moore. Leininger brings some power to the lineup, homering twice during the PUMA Classic while also running a 6.73 60-time. The left-handed bat is working off a season where he sent six over the fence, driving in 35, while slashing .299/.476/.556. While Moore finished his freshman year, slashing .300/.409/.522 with four home runs, driving in 23. Both these two have had impressive fall seasons, looking to lead the top half of the order heading into the 2026 season. Another pair of returning sophomores looking to play large roles this spring are INF Blake Crancer and OF Jake Espeland. Crancer is coming off a freshman year where he slashed .292/.390/.433 with five home runs, 37 RBIs, and 19 stolen bases. As Espeland looks to build off a rocky first year in which he slashed .235/.356/.424 with 17 RBIs, he showed noticeable improvement during the fall, translating that progress into in-game results. Finishing out the DMACC offense are two bats still searching for their breakthrough. Sophomore INF Austin Andersen appeared in just 13 at-bats last spring, while redshirt freshman OF Brayden Foster took the year to develop. Each has given good looks this spring, as Andersen's power has ticked up, posting EVs up to 100 mph, while Foster ups his max EV to 94mph while continuing his athletic ability in the field. This lineup will be an interesting one to follow as we wait to see how each piece settles in and builds off the others. Although till then, take a look at what our staff had to say on this DMACC lineup.

• SO. MIF Blake Crancer showed why he’s the kind of player coaches trust. A pair of hits, including a double yanked down the line on an upper-80s heater inside, highlighted his day. The swing still needs some polish in balance and timing, but his at-bats carried a competitive edge. Add in 6.8 speed and an 81 mph arm across the infield, and the foundation is there.

• SO. C Brock Moore left little doubt about his ability to punish mistakes. Three squared-up swings in four trips, including a no-doubt home run on a hanging fastball, told the story. The uphill path fuels pull-side juice, and behind the plate he shows a 78 mph arm with a 2.01 pop time — plenty to project on.

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